The State of Influencer Marketing in Beauty: Key Insights for Marketers
The beauty industry and influencer marketing are a match made in heaven. Due to the highly visual nature of beauty content, influencers dominate platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and, increasingly, TikTok. In fact, over 1,000 beauty influencers are active across Instagram and YouTube, and while TikTok has fewer beauty influencers, they have the highest average follower count and engagement rates—making TikTok an increasingly essential platform for reaching younger, highly engaged audiences.
Platform Insights for Beauty Marketers
Each social platform offers unique advantages for beauty brands:
Instagram: With a strong base in the U.S., Instagram is where beauty influencers connect with an audience largely aged 25-34, and engagement rates are especially high for micro-influencers (those with under 15K followers). For marketers targeting older audiences or male demographics, Instagram is also a key platform, with male influencers seeing higher engagement here.
YouTube: Beauty influencers on YouTube tend to have viewership that closely matches their follower size, especially at the macro and mega levels. Interestingly, micro-influencers (<15K) on YouTube buck the trend, sometimes getting more views per video than they have followers—making YouTube a hidden gem for high engagement, especially for brands aiming to capture dedicated beauty enthusiasts.
TikTok: Though smaller in number, TikTok beauty influencers command the highest engagement, at an average rate of 7.52%. Brands looking to reach a younger, highly engaged demographic should consider TikTok essential, as audiences interact with content much more on this platform compared to Instagram and YouTube.
Targeting and Trends
The vast majority (82%) of beauty followers on Instagram are female, with nearly half of them aged 25-34. This indicates a strong market for products targeting millennial women. However, the male influencer demographic, particularly in regions like Brazil, shows an emerging trend of high engagement and loyalty.
Hashtags remain powerful tools for visibility across platforms. Consistently, #makeup, #beauty, and #skincare are top hashtags, with brands seeing high visibility through collaborations with influencers using these tags.
Conclusion
For brands in the beauty sector, influencers on platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram offer nuanced engagement opportunities. By understanding the unique strengths of each platform and the demographic engagement trends, marketers can maximize impact, improve targeting, and capture the attention of highly visual beauty audiences worldwide.
